How to Remove an Eviction From My Public Record

An eviction will adversely affect your credit rating and may prevent a person from being able to rent an apartment or finance a house. Evictions happen for many reasons; most often is for non-payment of rent. Until outstanding amounts due are paid in full to a previous landlord or rental agency, the eviction will not be able to be removed. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, eviction records stay on your credit history for up to seven years unless they are removed by the previous landlord or rental agency.

• 1

  Contact the landlord or rental agency that filed for a court-ordered eviction. If there is an outstanding balance, you will need to make arrangements to have it paid in full. The landlord or rental agency may choose to pursue you in small claims court regarding monies owed if you do not arrange payments with them directly. You must ask if the landlord or rental agency is willing to remove the eviction from your record once debts are settled; the landlord or rental agency is not obligated to do so.

• 2

  Contact a lawyer to draw up papers stating that the final payment has been received, no further judgments from the rental agency are pending against you and that the landlord is willing to have the eviction record removed from your public records. Both you and your landlord will need to sign these papers. A rental company may have a form on hand for this purpose. Having a lawyer generate the necessary paperwork will ensure that the matter is completely resolved in the interest of both parties and that wording is acceptable to the courts.

• 3

  Wait 60 days before checking your credit report to verify that the situation has been resolved. If it has not been resolved, write a letter requesting that action be taken as per the agreement that both parties signed on the specific date. Mail this as a certified letter and wait for a response.